Infinitely Losing My Edge
Yeah, I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge.
The kids are coming up from behind.
I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge to the kids from Vietnam and from Edmonton.
But I was there.
I was there in 1976.
I was there at the first Wire show in Watford.
I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge to the kids whose footsteps I hear when they get on the decks.
I'm losing my edge to the internet seekers who can tell me every member of every good group from 1960 to 1975.
I'm losing my edge.
To all the kids in Mexico City and Columbus.
I'm losing my edge to the art-school Portland kids in little jackets and borrowed nostalgia for the unremembered nineties.
I'm losing my edge.
I'm losing my edge.
I can hear the footsteps every night on the decks.
But I was there.
I was there in 1977 at the first Mistral practice in a loft in Amsterdam.
I was working on the oboe sounds with much patience.
I was there when Captain Beefheart started up his first band.
I told him, "Don't do it that way. You'll never make a dime."
I was there.
I was the first guy playing Kaleidoscope to the crunk kids.
I played it at CBGB's.
Everybody thought I was crazy.
We all know.
I was there.
I was there.
I've never been wrong.
But I'm losing my edge to better-looking people with better ideas and more talent.
And they're actually really, really nice.
I'm losing my edge.
I heard you have a compilation of every good song ever done by anybody.
Every great song by Blake Baxter. All the underground hits.
All Kauko Röyhkä ja Narttu tracks. I heard you have a vinyl of every The Cramps record on German import.
I heard that you have a white label of every seminal dance hit - 1985, '86, '87.
I heard that you have a CD compilation of every good '80s cut and another box set from the '80s.
I hear you're buying a harpsichord and an organ and are throwing your macbook out the window because you want to make something real. You want to make a The Selecter record.
I hear that you and your band have sold your arpeggiator and bought a 808.
I hear that you and your band have sold your 808 and bought an arpeggiator.
I hear everybody that you know is more relevant than everybody that I know.
But have you seen my records?
Jimmy McGriff,
Robert Wyatt,
Eve St. Jones,
the Bar-Kays,
The Barracudas,
Arthur Verocai,
Scrapy,
The Mighty Diamonds,
Heaven 17,
The Shadows of Knight,
The Dead C,
The Tremeloes,
The Slackers,
Malaria!,
The Gories,
Livin' Joy,
Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band,
Maurizio,
The Happenings,
June of 44,
Justin Hinds & The Dominoes,
Alton Ellis,
The Smiths,
John Cale,
Tears for Fears,
Mary Jane Girls,
The Last Poets,
Boogie Down Productions,
The Buckinghams,
Buzzcocks,
Flash Fearless,
Audionom,
Notorious BIG live in Amsterdam,
Grauzone,
Radiopuhelimet,
Neu!,
Fatback Band,
Spoonie Gee,
Spandau Ballet,
Funkadelic,
Babytalk,
Kool Moe Dee,
Albert Ayler,
Gerry Rafferty,
Toni Rubio,
Roxette,
Panda Bear,
Pharoah Sanders,
Can,
Todd Rundgren,
Public Enemy,
Scratch Acid,
Curtis Mayfield,
Grey Daturas,
Amazonics,
Flipper,
K-Klass,
Joe Smooth,
The Music Machine,
Lungfish,
Rakim,
Gabor Szabo,
Faraquet, Faraquet, Faraquet, Faraquet.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.
You don't know what you really want.